Transposition
by Orenda
Summary: You don't know how much you will miss something until it is no longer yours to have. KY, later hints of 58 and 39. AU.
1. A New Journey

Transposition

By Orenda

Rating: PG-13 for now

Beta: Iapetus

Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki. I wish I did, because then Gojyo would always have red hair and there would be many shots of Hakkai in his demon form.

Pairings: Kougaiji/Yaone, and possible hints of 58 and 39, but no more than hints.

Warnings: Some violence in future chapters.

A/N: Okay, here's my first plunge into the Saiyuki fandom. Keep in mind that I'm twisting things around and all shall be explained when it needs to be and the time is right.

-

Chapter 1 - A New Journey

-

"He's waiting for you in the back."

With a slight nod to the bartender, the blond haired man that had just entered didn't even bother to look around the establishment as he made his way in the gestured direction. Having been to the place dozens of times, he didn't really have a reason to look around. He could have easily walked to the familiar booth with his eyes closed, already knowing the twists and turns to avoid the other tables. No one looked up at him; they were all too interested in their own affairs to pay any attention to anyone else. The usual customers would know who he was, but they knew better than to attract his attention to themselves, avoiding his gaze.

This had been his most frequented bar for the last year or so. It wasn't exactly huge, but it wasn't small enough for most conversations to be overheard, either. And as much as he traveled, most of his clientele had been found here, his reputation being such that this particular small town was the easiest place to locate him whenever they had a job that needed to be done.

Tonight he'd been told of a new potential client. He had yet to meet the man face to face, but it had been made obvious that this person had taken the time and effort to track him down. Being a bit curious, as he hadn't had many new clients in the last few years, he decided to see what it was all about.

The familiar smoke-hazed air and the dim lights in the room made it hard to see the man's detailed features at first, but he did not have to ask any questions as he sat down in his usual booth. It was rather busy tonight, which would help give their conversation an extra layer of privacy on top of having the best seat in the back corner of the room.

"I hear you've been looking for me."

A slight smirk was returned as the dark haired man sipped at his drink. "Yes, I have."

His usual waitress had seen him enter, so there was no exchange between them as she brought over his own usual order and left without a word.

"I come at a high price." His reputation had been steadily growing over the years, but the blond had learned that the occasional person would try and offer him less than what the job was worth.

"Which I am more than willing to pay… Genjo Sanzo."

He sounded very confident about the whole situation, and his smugness irritated the blond. But he hadn't been given any good assignments in at least a month, so he thought better of throwing out an insult, his violet eyes closing for a moment, determined to stay in control of the situation.

"Very well… Tell me more."

The dark haired man appeared to be thinking for a moment before an amused look flashed through his mismatched eyes. "Tell me… Are you familiar with the old legend of Saiyuki?"

The blond known as Genjo Sanzo blinked in slight surprise, "You mean the story of some stupid monk traveling around collecting those scripture things? Heh, who doesn't know of it? Demons supposedly wouldn't even be here anymore and the world would be in chaos if it wasn't for that guy stopping it."

"Yes, the gods would have far more to deal with than just simple squabbles without the legendary scriptures. Just making sure you know of it, whether you choose to believe it or not," the other man smiled. "You see, the job I have for you will require you to… act like the man from the legend, so to speak."

Sanzo gave him a scowl, "Right… as if I would ever be a damned priest."

"You would be surprised how people can change and what they can do when it is required of them."

Knowing that the man was leading him purposely around his reason for being there was definitely starting to get annoying. "If you don't mind, I'd like to get on with it. If you have no business for me, then I'll find something better to do with my time."

"Very well, then. I need you to take care of a certain… demon. He has something that I want, and he knows too much about what I need it for."

A couple sheets of paper were handed over, and silence took over as Sanzo scanned over them.

"Kougaiji, son of Gyumaoh… I see." He gave his new client a cold stare. "This will definitely cost you."

The black haired man waved his hand as if to shrug it off. "If you can take care of him, I will pay whatever price you ask."

Sanzo didn't answer right away, although whether that was a good sign or not was hard to tell.

"…How would you like me to deliver him, and with whom will I be negotiating?" It was a fairly common question in his line of work, considering that most of his customers preferred their secrecy and left him dealing with a third party. Not that he liked it one bit, but in some cases he was willing to tolerate it.

The man smiled, "You will be dealing directly with me. The location has been written down for you, so when the job is finished you may ask for me there."

Sanzo was getting rather annoyed with this guy's smugness, and his irritation was clear in his voice. "And _how_ should I be addressing you?"

There was amusement in his eyes, the blue and gold standing out in the dim light of the room. "You may call me Homura, and that is all that you need to know."

He finished his drink in one shot and started to stand up, but was instantly stopped by a gun being pointed directly at his head.

"I need a minimum of forty thousand as a down payment, or else I'll be taking my services elsewhere." Sanzo was determined to stay in control of the situation, but what he really wanted was to wipe that annoying smile off of the man's face, one way or another. His reputation owed him at least that privilege.

And yet even being held at gunpoint by the legendary Genjo Sanzo wasn't enough to faze him, "Of course… just talk to the front desk at the inn across the street in one hour, and it will be there. In fact, I will even throw in a gold card to pay for all of your traveling expenses. Fair enough?"

The gun was not lowered, but his finger reluctantly moved off of the trigger.

"Very well, then," Homura bowed slightly, although Sanzo was fairly certain it was more out of jest than anything else, which only angered him more. "I shall be looking forward to conversing with you again soon."

It was highly tempting to shoot a remark to the man's retreating back, but then Sanzo sighed in annoyance instead, deciding that this Homura fellow was not worth his effort. The blond stayed where he was a while longer, finishing his drink at his own pace, staring at nothing from across the room as he thought about what he had just gotten himself into.

He never noticed the dark shadowy figure stand up from a chair two tables away and disappear into the night.

-

Not in the mood to stay and drink all night and not ready to sleep yet, Sanzo decided to go out for some air. It was not all that cold outside, so it wasn't like he would freeze in the process. He needed some time to figure out how he should go about going after this Kougaiji.

But he was not worried. He had dealt with some nasty characters in his past, demon or otherwise. The real problem was getting a starting point with which to track him down, a bit harder than for his average assignments since the CEO tended to move around quite frequently for his business transactions and also, more often than not, in secret. If it was absolutely necessary, he could call in some favors that he'd been stocking up on, but after his last job, he would much rather gather information himself than rely on someone else.

Stopping by a lamp post to light up a cigarette, he didn't even bother to look up as he leaned against it, smoke trailing up into the air. "If you want something, then say it. You don't have to follow me around."

There was a moment of time when there was nothing but silence, but soon a shadow stepped out from the darkness and into the artificial light, revealing the figure of a young boy, his dark colored hair making him hard to see in the available light.

Sanzo had been in this town long enough to recognize the boy easily; he had been around more than once. He took another drag of his cigarette, "But if you're looking for the stupid monkey, he's not here. You'll have to play with him some other time."

The boy shook his head, knowing there was no use hiding from Sanzo now. "No, that's not it… I heard that you'd be looking for someone, and I'm supposed to help." The look on his face became a smirk, "Although hearing that you might need help, the one and only Genjo Sanzo, is pretty pathetic."

Sanzo glared at the boy, "I'm not asking for anything, Nataku. And what would you know about it? Or were you spying for someone?"

The boy known as Nataku shook his head. "I was just bored!" There was a pause, followed by a sheepish grin. Something about the way he answered told the blond that the boy most definitely had another motivation other than entertainment. "And then… Yeah, I happened to hear a few things about someone named Kougaiji. It's funny what people will tell kids, you know?"

From being around the kid a few times when he was spending time with his… with Goku, Sanzo was most definitely not fooled by Nataku's size. The boy obviously understood a whole lot more than most at his age, and probably got away with quite a few things. In fact, he had considered leaving Goku behind to stay with him, except for when it came to the monkey, for some reason it never seemed to work to just get rid of him. The whole thing irked Sanzo to no end, so he tried not to think about it too often.

Sanzo sighed in annoyance, "Keep it to yourself… I can find the information by myself, kid."

"But can you find it in time? Word has it that he's leaving tomorrow for somewhere that he can't be found or bothered…"

That got the man's attention. If Kougaiji was really going to seclude himself, it would probably force Sanzo into harsher methods of persuasion, including blood. And despite his specialties, he'd rather not deal with the mess it would cause, since he was only being paid to take care of one. So the faster he could get the whole thing over with… And, of course, all of this would only be an issue if this Homura was able to give him what he'd asked for…

After a pause and a puff of smoke rose in the air, he asked, "…What do you want for it?"

Nataku gave him an innocent but serious look, "Just a little money for breakfast and lunch tomorrow. And I'll make it worth it, honest!"

He shouldn't do it. It would cause him trouble later down the road, just like last time… But the extra work and time involved any other way could cost him a lot more than what he wanted to pay…

Digging some money out of his pocket, he scanned the area with his eyes before holding it out in front of him. "Tell me."

-

It was still as dark outside when he returned to the building across the street from the bar as it had been when he'd left; not that he had expected it to change a whole lot. Having just talked to a girl down at the front desk where he was staying, there was in fact an envelope there that had just been delivered a short time before. He did not open it in front of her, not wanting anyone else to know of its contents, but he knew that it would be nothing else than what he requested. Damn that Homura for actually being good to his word. There would be no turning back now.

As he stepped into the room, all the lights were off save for the bathroom light, which had been left on for him to see what he was doing. But everything else was quiet, save for the soft snoring that could be heard coming from underneath the blankets of his bed. Sanzo rolled his eyes at the sound, his black leather jacket that had been concealing him slipping off his shoulders and being draped over the doorknob for easy retrieval later.

Grabbing a nearby pillow, he chucked it at the lump in the covers, "Goku, get up!"

The said lump stirred, and a pair of golden eyes appeared from the blanket, blinking sleepily as the figure sat up.

"Is it time for breakfast already…?" he asked with a yawn.

Clothes that were discarded at the end of the bed were thrown at him in a similar manner as the pillow, "It's not even early morning yet, idiot. Come on, we're leaving."

Although it wasn't the thing he wanted to hear, the statement was enough to catch Son Goku's attention. "Leaving? You mean on a trip?"

The older man didn't bother to look up from gathering the rest of their possessions from around the room. "I've gotten a new assignment. We have to head west, and I don't want to wait until morning. Now get dressed."

Not wanting to further push the man's patience, Goku shoved the bed covers out of his way and stood up, only to get his foot caught in his pair of jeans in the process of putting them on. This caused him to lose his balance, and he just barely kept himself from falling face flat on the floor.

"Stupid monkey," Sanzo muttered, closing the pack with all of their belongings inside.

Goku frowned, with his pants now correctly placed as he fastened his belt buckle. "I'm not a monkey!"

"Then quit acting like one. You're lucky I'm even letting you come." Sanzo looked over the information he was given a bit more closely. "…He's supposed to be staying in the next town over with his younger sister, so if we leave now, we should make it there before dawn."

"So… No breakfast?" Goku ducked out of the way to avoid getting hit with a flying object. "Hey! Okay, okay! I'm ready now… But why can't we wait until morning and take the bus? It doesn't run this late at night…"

"Because I'm not going to wait around and let him get away. Now do you want me to leave you here, or not?"

"I'm going! Sheesh…" Goku was less than enthused about walking, but he knew better than to question Sanzo's methods. At least, he remembered not to some of the time.

And so his new assignment began, although this time Sanzo couldn't help but wonder if the ending results might turn out much differently than normal.

-

The sky was rather cloudy, making it darker than it normally would have been had the stars been out. And for the most part, the darkness shared company with an overwhelming silence, which filled the night with tension rather than tranquility.

He sat out on the balcony of the apartment he'd been staying in for the past two months or so, watching as the moonlight grew even dimmer as clouds brushed past each other to cover the moon behind them. The thickness of the air and his heightened senses told him that it was going to start storming soon.

So much had happened since he had first arrived here. He had somehow found himself in a worse situation than he'd ever imagined. Up until six months ago, he was forced to heed every whim of that… that woman. If it wasn't for the younger sister that she had given him, he would have told her exactly what he thought of her a long time ago. But her own greed had cost her dearly in the end, leaving it up to him to deal with the mess that she had left behind. If it wasn't for those scriptures that he had been ordered to collect for her… He tightened his hand into a fist just from thinking about it.

There was suddenly a new presence behind him; his senses allowed for no surprise as a hand was suddenly rested upon his shoulder.

"Kougaiji? I think it's time for you to leave," a familiar voice insisted to him.

Long red hair moved as he turned his head, due to a light breeze on the balcony, and his eyes locked onto the newcomer in his room. "So it's true? They're on their way?"

The demon with short black hair nodded, "My informant just called me and says that they just left a short time ago and are heading in our direction. If you leave now, you still have a pretty good chance."

Kougaiji sighed, closing his eyes briefly, "You should know better than anyone what I think about it, Dokugakuji. Why should I back down from a single human and his pet?"

The other demon looked back into the main room of Kougaiji's apartment, where a small figure was curled up with a pillow and smiling in her sleep. "Because you and I both know that she wouldn't be able to stand up against the infamous Genjo Sanzo."

Kougaiji turned to look at the figure as well, and only a few people close to him would be able to recognize the slight tensing of his body as worry. "Lirin…"

He paused as she shifted on the couch. "If I leave before they get here, they'll leave her alone."

His companion shook his head, "I wouldn't count on it. He'd probably try and use her as a way to lure you out." When Kougaiji did not give an answer, he continued, "Perhaps you should take her somewhere with you."

Watching the bright haired girl as she stirred from her sleep, Kougaiji didn't even notice as a couple raindrops fell from the sky and collided with his jacket.

"I'll take her to Yaone… She should be safe with her," he decided. "What about you?" He looked up at the demon.

Dokugakuji shook his head, "I need to stay here and keep an eye on things for you. Don't worry about it."

The red haired demon knew his reasons, and also knew that there was no need to question his assistant's loyalty.

The entire issue would not normally be a problem to him. And if he was in different circumstances, or in other words, only dealing with himself, he would have just insisted on staying to confront the problem himself. But he just couldn't force Lirin into the situation; it wouldn't be fair or a safe thing to do. Despite his feelings for her late mother, he cared about her more than he was willing to admit.

But a curious sounding voice made it evident that perhaps she was not as deeply asleep as her older brother had thought. "You mean we're going away?"

Sighing softly, he knew better than to lie to her. "For a little while, anyways. We're going to see Yaone."

Lirin seemed to be instantly awake, and bounced of the couch to stand in front of the two males. "Oh! …It's because you like her so much! Right?" she giggled.

Her words never ceased to amaze him, and it was all he could do to keep the surprise off of his face.

"We're going because she is one of my most trustworthy associates who can help me right now." Kougaiji tried to ignore the look of amusement on the other demon's face.

Lirin's smile faded a little at his words, giving her older brother a small pout, "You mean you don't like her? Not even at all…?"

The red haired demon sighed, "I didn't mean… It's not that I don't like her…"

Her smile returned instantly, "See? I knew you liked her. You don't look at anyone else but her that way, ever!"

To avoid getting himself into further trouble, he decided not to reply to that statement. But his silence spoke seemed to speak louder than words, which didn't help him in the least.

"You should get going, then… Wouldn't want to keep your lady waiting…"

The comment earned Dokugakuji a small glare before Kougaiji spoke to Lirin in a serious tone, "Will you please leave with me now and go stay with Yaone?"

Lirin picked up on the seriousness in his voice and nodded, "I'm ready. Let's go!"

He nodded in approval as the raindrops started to multiply. It was certainly starting to prove to be an interesting night.

-

"Sanzo… Do we have to go while it's raining like this?" Goku whined.

He wanted to go back and sleep some more, or at the very least get some food considering that he was being deprived of breakfast, or even a midnight snack. Not to mention the rain made it hard for either of them to see very far in front of them as they walked.

But the rain seemed to make Sanzo even crankier than usual. "Just shut up and keep moving." To be honest, the rain wasn't exactly helping Goku's mood, either.

Yet again since Goku had started traveling with the man he noticed Sanzo's apparent dislike for the rain. There had been many times that he'd wanted to ask why he hated it so much, but he definitely did not like the idea of a gun aimed at his head or having lead through his skull. Perhaps he could ask after the rain stopped and Sanzo was in a better mood.

Knowing that it would not do any good to complain anymore just yet, Goku changed the subject. "So… What's the big deal with this Kougaiji guy? Did he do something to piss someone off or something?"

Even though it had only been about two years since Goku had been thrown into Sanzo's life, it was quite evident that he had been picking up on Sanzo's use of language.

Sanzo sighed, but considering the fact that his gun did not appear, it must have been a fairly safe question to ask. "Kougaiji is the son of Gyumaoh, and-"

"-You mean the Gyumaoh? The demon that was known for…"

"Yes, now shut the hell up," Sanzo cut him off before his interruption could finish. "The only thing that matters is that we have to track him down and bring him back with us."

Goku felt like the blond was hiding something, but was in doubt of finding out what it was for a while, if at all. He frowned, "So then how do you know where we're going?"

Knowing Goku, telling him who his current source was wouldn't be the best option just yet. "I have my sources."

It wasn't even dawn yet, but the rain just seemed to tell them that the coming day was not looking to be a very good one.

-

To Be Continued…

A/N: I'll update whenever my plot penguins allow me to, because they usually like to plague me with writer's block. But I will try.


	2. Complications

Transposition

By Orenda

Rating: R – It's changed since last chapter.

Beta: Iapetus

Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki. If I did, you would see Sanzo in a grass skirt and a coconut bra.

Pairings: Kougaiji/Yaone, and possible hints of 58 and 39, but no more than hints.

WARNINGS: Violence and character death. I warned you.

A/N: I know this one is more on the short side of things, but I promise I'll make up the length next chapter. I just didn't want to add on a scene prematurely just so it could be longer.

Chapter 2 – Complications

-

Having constant responsibilities like the ones given to her under Kougaiji's orders made it very difficult to leave time open for other important things, such as cleaning. In fact, it took Yaone quite a bit of effort to even take the time from her work long enough to clean up the current place Kougaiji had given her to stay in. She usually was not the type to put such things off until the point that it could wait no longer, but lately she had been rather distracted by other things that kept her from it.

On the other hand, she was also not used to Kougaiji being away for such a long period of time without her accompanying him. Being his "apothecary", as they jokingly called her talents, among her other duties, usually required her to travel with him. And while being left in charge while he was away proved his trust in her, it did make her wish that she could have came along to help as well.

So of course when the phone rang in the middle of the time she had set aside for just cleaning, it made her a bit frustrated. But her frustration left as quickly as it had arrived. Only a few certain people knew the number of this place, so maybe she would finally be able to hear some good news for a change.

Grabbing a nearby towel to wipe her hands dry from the soapy water she had been using to wash dishes with, Yaone managed to rush over and grab the phone by the third ring. "Hello?"

"Yaone," a familiar voice greeted her – Dokugakuji, she realized. "Kou just left with Lirin a few minutes ago by dragon. They're coming your way, and they should arrive there in a few hours."

Yaone blinked in surprise. Kougaiji wasn't supposed to come back from his trip until his business was completed in another week or two. "He finished his negotiating early?" she asked.

"No. Apparently someone has a grudge, or maybe issues with the way he operates, because Genjo Sanzo has been hired by someone to kill him."

She gasped, grasping the phone tighter, "And he's not exactly affordable to just anyone. It would take someone with almost as many resources as Kougaiji's…"

"…Or at least someone with as many connections, yes." Dokugakuji sounded a bit worried, "But I sent them to you to help him protect Lirin. I'm afraid I'll have to stay here to protect Kou's other… secrets."

It suddenly registered to Yaone what he was talking about, and she nodded, despite the fact that he would not be able to see her. "Right, of course. Thank you for telling me. I'll keep an eye out for them to arrive. They should be safe once they're here."

She detected a grim amusement in his voice, "Between you and Lirin's over-protective brother, there should not be much of a problem. Take care."

There was a click of the phone as he hung up, leaving her in an eerie silence.

So now someone was after Kougaiji, the one whom she cared the most about, and soon she would be the only thing standing in their way. The idea was rather intimidating – not that she believed that he couldn't take care of himself. In fact, he was most definitely a force to be reckoned with, stronger than a lot of demons that she had seen. But still…

True she hadn't been expecting to see him for a while yet, the longest time that they had been separated since Kougaiji had asked her to stay and work for him. But knowing that he was coming did give her a bit of an incentive to finish her cleaning before they arrived…

The lights in the room suddenly grew dim before going out completely, causing her to freeze where she was as she looked around. Something did not feel right. The rain wouldn't have caused a power outage that easily, would it? She hadn't heard any thunder… Her eyes darting back and forth, she spotted the steadily growing shadows that surrounded her.

She spun around quickly to face the new intruding presences. But unfortunately for her, the previous distraction of Dokugakuji's phone call had been enough to keep her from noticing them in time.

With the phone still within reach, she picked it back up and dialed the number quickly, and heard it pick up after the first ring.

"Yes?"

She took in a fast breath, "Doku, I-"

A cloth was shoved into her mouth forcefully from behind, cutting her off. She struggled to break free, but they had too good of a hold on her, keeping her from moving much at all. The shadows soon overwhelmed her, and her last conscious thought was for Kougaiji's safety before everything disappeared into darkness.

The phone had dropped out of her hand, falling with a clunk to the floor. Dokugakuji could be heard yelling Yaone's name over the phone for a few seconds before the line was cut, leaving the recipient of the call without even so much as a dial tone.

-

What had started out to be an annoying downpour of rain slowly turned into a damp, foggy drizzle by the time the sun was beginning to rise. The trip itself had been starting to get rather troublesome, and they had barely even started. So it was much relief to both the "master" and his "apprentice" that even though their clothes were soaked all the way through, travel would soon be much easier.

Making their way through the streets, they checked a few addresses before finding the right one. The building was completely deserted, or at least it appeared to be, on the outside as well as the inside. The door had been left unlocked, so gaining access inside was simple. Sanzo kept his guard up, though, not taking any chances. If Kougaiji was still there, then he would definitely be guarded by someone.

After doing a brief examination of all of the rooms on the ground floor, he made his way over to the stairway. He glanced back in annoyance at his smaller companion, who was visibly distracted by the materials in the room they were in.

"Sanzo, this place is huge! Think they have any food? How come you don't have this much stuff, huh?" While Goku knew that Sanzo usually had more than enough money to stay in a place of the same size, he couldn't always understand why the blond chose not to.

Sanzo decided that it wasn't worth answering the question. "…Idiot. I want you to stay here. I don't need you being a distraction."

Goku's look instantly became one of protest and hurt. "B-But Sanzo! I'm trying to learn how to be really good, like you, and I can't if I don't watch. I'll stay really quiet, I promise!"

Sometimes the man would give in when told things like that, and let Goku help a little. He was definitely stronger than others that were his age, and with his constantly improving fighting skills, Goku would easily be a force to be reckoned with in a short amount of time. But this particular job was a bit more complicated than some of his other ones; Kougaiji was well known and respected, and it would not be easy to catch him off guard. He refused to be distracted right now, even if all he managed to accomplish was gathering more information.

"I said that you're going to stay here. Wait for me." With that, the blond turned around and started his way up the stairs, not bothering to look back and see what the other would do.

Goku walked up to the bottom step, watching with a little disappointment as Sanzo ascended to the next floor. The brunette sighed deeply before taking a seat on the step, wondering how long it was going to take. He blinked as a mental image appeared in his head, causing him to smile. For some odd reason, seeing Sanzo climbing the stairs reminded him of the sun rising in the morning sky.

-

There was nothing. No sounds of anyone moving around except himself, no bits of information or clues lying around, just nothing useful to him. It was annoying, and Sanzo had had enough annoyances for one day already, considering that his clothes were still damp and he wasn't any closer to hunting down his target than he was when he started.

He was down to just one room left to search, and it was behind a locked door. Well, Sanzo's lock-picking skills were not exactly expertise, but he knew enough to get around to where he needed to get.

Right now, however, he wasn't in the mood; he simply aimed his Smith and Wesson at the doorknob and fired. Once his way was cleared, Sanzo stepped into the room, cautiously awaiting the results of his efforts.

The first thing that he noticed was the window. The other rooms on the floor had some small windows, but this one opened up onto a balcony – or rather, it used to. Now it was nothing but a hole in the wall, with glass shattered everywhere.

And then there was the blood… Splatter marks on the wall trailed down to form a crimson puddle on the floor. Sanzo quickly spotted what he needed to know about the scene – the lifeless body on the floor was not his prey.

It was a demon, but it was not Kougaiji. His short, dark hair helped to prove that.

Judging by the chaos of the room, he must have struggled very hard to protect something. But whatever it had been had obviously failed.

Sanzo knelt down next to the demon's limp form, being careful not to get any of the blood on his clothes; he didn't want to be connected to a crime that wasn't his. He carefully touched the demon's neck – there was no pulse. It looked like he had been shot with a machine gun, and possibly attacked with a whip as well. Standing up, he examined the blood-stained wall a bit closer. Judging from the freshness, the act must have occurred only a short time before he and Goku had arrived.

Although Sanzo was now glad that Goku wasn't going to be seeing this; he knew that the monkey was getting used to such things in this profession, but Goku still had a hard time dealing with violence involving "innocent bystanders". Then Sanzo would have to put up with his depression for the rest of the day.

There was one other thing that bothered him. If this really was Kougaiji's office, as it appeared to be, then why was nothing else in the room torn up? Whoever had killed this demon must have been interested in Kougaiji's dealings, but the only signs that anything was wrong were the broken window and the new blood-stained decoration on the floor. So either they were very clean and thorough in their search, or… Perhaps they were deliberately trying to stop him? It was possible, but not an idea that he'd like to think about.

It was time to move on to the next step. He left, making sure there was no evidence of his presence remaining. He was sure the police would come to investigate pretty soon, so it would be much better if they were long gone by then.

He was suddenly given an idea. It would be much more efficient than walking…

-

The whispers started several hours later, a while after the two newcomers had made their way through the streets towards the other side of town. Tension was in the already dampened air from the earlier rain, the ones moving about seeming to tell each other to keep an eye out for anything unusual.

One of the town's inhabitants, a man who just so happened to be out and about a bit earlier than usual to run some errands, picked up on the slowly building tension. The strange feeling caused him to feel cautious, yet curious at the same time.

He brushed his dark hair away from his face, suddenly spotting someone that he knew walking in the opposite direction. Perhaps this friend could tell him what was going on, since he had been living in the area for a longer period of time, not to mention the fact that being a detective in training had its advantages of knowing information before most others did.

"Tonpou!" he called out, waving at him with a smile when attention was given to him.

The other man waved back, and changed his course to meet up with him. "Hey, Hakkai. Haven't seen you or Gojyo around in a while."

Cho Hakkai nodded in agreement, "I'm afraid that we've been rather busy lately. How have you been?"

Tonpou grinned at the question, "Probably as busy as you two have been, if not more. There's been some accusations of embezzlement and sabotage from within Tenjiku Corporation. We've been assigned to investigate it for the last week or so." His smile faded a bit, "It's tiring, but I guess someone has to do it."

Hakkai's look became thoughtful, "I see. Is that what all the commotion is about?"

The other man's smile disappeared completely as he was reminded of his reason for being out that morning. "That is… part of it. One of Kougaiji's personal assistants that had been staying here with him was found murdered early this morning, and Kougaiji himself seems to have disappeared."

Hakkai frowned. A murder… That would explain the strange feeling that was in the air. But there still seemed to be a piece of the puzzle missing.

He nodded in understanding, "…And I take it that's about all you're allowed to tell me?"

"The victim's name hasn't been released yet, no. They're trying to figure out how to contact his family." Tonpouhesitated, looking around before continuing. "Well… There's been some rumors spreading that Genjo Sanzo came through town very early this morning, headed in the direction of the scene."

Hakkai's eyes turned cold at the mention of that name. Genjo Sanzo… Not him… He looked rather frightening for a moment before he quickly managed to collect himself. Yet the darkness remained behind his eyes, making them seem greener than usual. "Sanzo…"

The other man picked up on Hakkai's sudden uneasiness, "But I wouldn't worry about it too much. There weren't any real witnesses to confirm anything. Someone probably started the rumor just to cause a commotion, I'm sure."

"Maybe." Hakkai's expression didn't change. "Thanks for the information. I should probably be letting you get back to work now."

He nodded, "Yeah, probably. We should catch up sometime."

"Sure."

It was then that Hakkai continued on his way, not looking back and struggling to maintain his composure until he could make it back to Gojyo's place a block away.

Tonpou watched him leave, wondering what had caused the usually very collected man to be shaken up. Although he supposed if anyone knew the answer to that, it would be Sha Gojyo.

To Be Continued…


	3. Revelations and Discoveries

Transposition

By Orenda

Rating: R

Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki. If I did, Reload would have been dubbed with the ADV voice actors.

Pairings: Kougaiji/Yaone, and possible hints of 58 and 39.

A/N: I'm sorry… Lost my inspiration for this fic for a while, and then real life got in the way. I wanted to add an extra scene at the end, but decided to just get this out. Hope you enjoy it.

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Chapter 3 – Revelations and Discoveries

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Making his way down the street, Hakkai stopped and turned to a familiar looking door. He knew that it would be unlocked, so he didn't bother with fishing his keys from his jeans pocket, turning the knob to let himself inside.

He wasn't sure what the other occupant of the place would be doing – perhaps taking a shower or something. But as he walked into the main room, his companion's crimson hair seemed to stand out in the natural light coming in from the window, grabbing his attention. But something wasn't right, the way he just sat there staring at a piece of paper…

"Gojyo?" Hakkai managed to keep his voice neutral, with just a hint of the earlier coldness remaining behind his concern.

The man known as Sha Gojyo did not answer him at first, his red eyes still cast upon the paper in his hands. Then, he casually crumpled it into a ball, squeezing it with his fist. It was the eerie, calm silence of the half-demon that told Hakkai that something was very wrong.

After a prolonged silence between them, Gojyo finally broke it with a tone that contradicted his usual show of emotions when something was bothering him.

"…It's amazing, isn't it?" His hands were shaking, Hakkai noticed. "How easy it is for things to change around you… You'd know."

Hakkai wasn't sure whether or not to answer just yet, not wanting to trigger an emotional outburst. Gojyo was currently unstable, and he needed to find out why.

The redhead made it easy and continued without prompting. "How did you do it? I mean… How did you…" he finally looked directly into Hakkai's eyes, "…give up your revenge? Why did you stop killing everything in sight?"

Hakkai returned the look very seriously, no pretend smiles or fakeness as he had earlier out in the street. He took a seat on the chair next to Gojyo, so that they were on an equal level with each other.

"There are times when I still want to. But… people like you showed me it wasn't worth it."

Gojyo broke eye contact, looking down at the ball of paper still tightly grasped in his hand. "Maybe I was wrong."

Still not wanting to set the redhead off, Hakkai had to make sure to choose his next words carefully. He had to remain calm about it.

"What happened, Gojyo?"

The half-demon gave him an answer much easier than expected. "…My brother is dead."

Hakkai's eyes widened. If he remembered correctly, Gojyo had mentioned his older brother before, but only passing in conversation. He'd never shared the details, but Hakkai knew that Gojyo hadn't seen or talked to his brother in quite some time. It was not what he'd been expected his roommate to say.

And that was when it clicked in his brain. "He was a full demon?"

A silent nod was the reply, a bit of crimson hair falling into Gojyo's face.

Hakkai's voice dropped down a level in volume. "Did he work for Tenjiku Corp?"

At the mention of Kougaiji's business stronghold, Gojyo's eyes grew dark, similar to the way Hakkai's eyes had when Sanzo's name was brought up before.

"How did you find out?" Anger was hidden underneath that unrealistic calmness, but Hakkai only noticed it from being around Gojyo for so long.

"I ran into a friend this morning." Hakkai had no reason not to give an honest answer. "He told me that a body was found."

If Gojyo had been in a different state of mind, he probably could have figured out exactly who Hakkai was referring to. At the moment, however, he could not have cared less.

"They wouldn't take him out easily…" His voice was emotionless. "He should've been able to kick the guy's ass and bring him down too."

At that point, the feelings that Hakkai had put aside before for Gojyo's sake decided to return to him in full force, and this time there was no mask for Hakkai to hide behind; the redhead was able to pick up on the strong change even in his current mind set.

Hakkai looked away, focusing on the wall behind Gojyo. "That is, unless it was someone like Genjo Sanzo."

The half-demon blinked, "That guy's just a legend, a story told by parents to frighten their kids and make them behave. He probably doesn't even exist."

Up until then, neither knew a whole lot about the other's past from before they met. Gojyo knew that Hakkai was a demon that was once a human, and that he had to kill many demons to make him what he was, but Hakkai had never really told him the reasoning behind it other than for revenge. He'd never asked. Just like Gojyo had never mentioned much of his past, or the reason why he hadn't been on speaking terms with he brother. It was just simpler and less painful not to reopen old scars. But Gojyo had a strong feeling they were both going to discover more about the past than they'd originally planned.

"He exists, and he is very real." Hakkai allowed his roommate to see what he'd kept hidden from Tonpou, his anger and frustration from another time and place, "I've actually seen him once."

When Gojyo didn't answer, Hakkai decided to quit putting off the inevitable, his voice a little shaky, "…I watched him as he walked away from our old house, minutes after finding my sister lifeless and covered in blood."

It seemed like the day was going to be full of surprises.

Gojyo stood up, unable to just sit there any longer, especially with this brand new piece of information from the man he'd started to grow close to over the last year or so.

"…And you think that he was here?" he asked.

"I know that he was," was the simple reply.

The half-demon remained where he was, absorbing the last fifteen minutes in his mind. Hakkai was still too wound up from admitting his past out loud for the first time, and was either unable or unwilling to provide anything else. The room was filled with an uncomfortable silence.

Gojyo walked towards the door and left the room without a word, leaving Hakkai sitting there alone in his thoughts.

-

It had taken some time for Hakkai to recollect himself, almost an hour. He had never realized just how hard it would be for him to tell someone about his past, even Gojyo, the man who had saved his life and had given him a brand new start on it all.

But now the worst part was over, and if they talked again, it would be much easier the next time. That thought alone made him feel relief. Gojyo already knew the general idea of what he had done, and now he knew the reason why. And Gojyo had accepted what he'd done, what he'd become, even without knowing that reason before. So Hakkai wasn't all too worried in that regard.

He took a deep breath before knocking on Gojyo's bedroom door.

His answer was a bit delayed, "It's unlocked."

Hakkai took the message to mean that he didn't mind having company, so he opened the door. There he found the redhead packing up a bag, some of his belongings scattered around more than usual.

"Are you leaving now?" he asked softly.

Gojyo looked up and him a grim smile. "The longer we just sit around here, the farther away that bastard will get from his punishment."

The brunette sighed, "I don't want you ending up like me, you know."

"I know. And don't worry… I won't. I'll have you to stop me from getting that far." Gojyo seemed very serious about the entire thing.

The statement seemed to be both surprising and not at the same time to Hakkai.

"And what makes you think that I'm going to be coming with you?"

Looking straight into his eyes, Gojyo gave him an honest answer, "…Because you can't stop me, and I know that you'd never let me do this alone."

Hakkai found a dark amusement in the reply. He hesitated, clearing away some of his thoughts.

"Well," he finally said, "I guess I'd better pack some food for later and see what else we'll need."

Gojyo was expecting him to say something like that. "It's a good thing I won last night playing cards, right?" His eyes seemed more noticeably red than usual. "Let's go and avenge our siblings, shall we?"

-

If he had been alone, Kougaiji would have already met up with Yaone hours ago. But with Lirin, he had to be much more cautious, taking extra precautions so they wouldn't be seen. And his dragon couldn't travel as fast with both passengers as it could with only just one. That and they'd been flying just above the cloud line all night in order to avoid the rain.

Kougaiji had offered to let Lirin lean against him and go back to sleep until they arrived, but she had insisted that she was fine, asking him several times why they'd had to leave so fast. He was silent and ignored the questions, so she'd eventually grown tired of it and gave up. Kougaiji told himself that he'd try and make it up to her after this whole thing was over, especially since she was still dealing with her mother's death and everything surrounding it, even if she thought differently of her mother because of her actions in the past. She was very tough, and might possibly have to get tougher soon. With his job, and now full responsibility over her, he didn't always have the time for her that he should…

He promised mentally to himself to do what he could to make her life easier, make it all up to her.

As a precautionary measure, he had keys to all of the buildings that he owned or rented in case he had the need to use them for one reason or another, including the place he had gotten for Yaone. The main entrance needed a key to get in, and Yaone's apartment was up on the second floor. He brought Lirin inside with him and headed up the stairs to the next level.

Lirin decided that being within such a close distance to Yaone might make her brother more willing to talk, and made the effort to try again.

"Kou, why are we hiding from everyone? I'm not scared, you know!"

He sighed softly. "I know, Lirin," he assured her. "It was just easier not to be seen. I… don't feel like dealing with anyone else today."

She could tell that it was not the whole truth, but did not call him out on it. Actually, she was more interested in why the door at the end of the hall was wide open when everything else was shut up.

Kougaiji was very interested as well; that was Yaone's door! He rushed inside, his demon eyes burning with worry as they quickly adjusted to the darkness.

"Yaone?" he called out, ignoring his sister as she flew in after him.

Everything was silent, empty. It was as if the owner had just disappeared into thin air, leaving everything behind.

His attention was drawn to a note sitting next to the telephone on a small corner table. Kougaiji picked it up and read it, anger and worry evident in his features.

The note was simple, only four words. "Sorry… You're too late." It was left unsigned, nor was it addressed to anyone specifically, and yet Kougaiji knew it was for him.

They had gotten to her. Someone must have known that he was coming, and they'd taken her away before he was able to reach her.

It meant that they knew what Kougaiji had been up to for the last couple of weeks, and that the game had just gotten a whole lot more dangerous.

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To Be Continued...

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A/N: I'll try and keep working on this soon. I really don't want it to die...


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